The Haunted Mountain
by Tigey Wigey
Summary: "When I was a cub, my dad told me this story about a small herd of mastodons that were standing where we are now. A fight broke out, and they were all trumpeting at each other. Because they were making so much noise, all the snow on the top of the mountain came tumbling down as an avalanche. All of them were killed. Everyone within a ten mile radius could hear them screaming."


Hello, readers :) It's been forever, but I have been plagued by writer's block. I am temporarily out of it right now, so I decided to seize the moment to write something. I remember reading this ghost story on this website not too long ago, and I decided to give it my own little twist. I don't remember who wrote it, so don't credit me with the plot...nor the awesome characters. Those awesome people belong to Blue Sky Studios. Well...enjoy!

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Deep in the heart of the Ice Age's snow-covered and merciless terrain forever sat this huge, rocky mountain. It was no Mount Everest, but for a mountain, it was a pretty descent height. Though it looked like any ordinary mountain, it was far from typical. Atop it lay thousands of pounds of icy snow, waiting to tumble at the slightest provocation. All who knew about it would consider it the most dangerous single land formation on earth, and would steer clear of it at all costs. If anyone near it were to make a loud sound- -even the shouts of a quarreling couple- -a disastrous avalanche was guaranteed to occur. Despite that, a sabre-toothed cat named Diego led himself and his six friends trudging through the snow one night, heading straight towards the very mountain that has claimed millions of innocent lives.

"Diego, where are you taking us?" asked a tall, dark-brown mammoth named Manny. He obviously would have rather been asleep than out hiking in the snow at this time of day. "Couldn't you just have told us back at the village?" With everyone but Diego himself wondering the same thing, no one dared to say a word as they awaited the cat's response.

"This is one of those things where you have to see it to believe it," he said coolly. "None of you would've believed me if I had just told you."

His ominous acknowledgement silenced the group, mostly due to the fact that they had no idea what they were in for. They had absolutely no clue as to what their friend was dragging them into, especially since it was in the middle of the night. Diego had a certain glimmer of excitement in his eyes that none of them had ever seen before in him; his unusual excitement went against his cool cat façade, which made them even more anxious deep down. Up ahead, Diego could see the mountain- -his desired destination- -become closer and closer as the herd traveled forward. The corners of his mouth slightly curved upward into a confident smile.

"I'd believe you," Manny's daughter Peaches mumbled with a tired yawn, "so can we please go back home now?"

Her mother, Ellie, nodded. "I think we should probably head back. I mean, it's gonna storm soon, and I don't think we'd want to be caught up in that," she stated persuasively, noticing the storm clouds moving in overhead.

Diego realized the storm, yet he shook his head dismissively. "We can't turn back now...We're almost there."

Indeed, the herd was practically at the mountain, and Diego halted upon reaching it. A sloth named Sid and two possums named Crash and Eddie plopped down into the snow, exhausted from the night's hour-long journey. Everyone watched Diego oddly as the cat took a few steps toward the mountain, craning his head upward as he studied the faint detail of the rocky crags and glistening snow on the mountain's surface.

"Okay, so let me get this straight," Manny said irritably. "You led us here in the middle of the night when it's about to storm to look at a mountain?" The drowsy group frowned in disappointment and slight anger. Just then, a loud bang of thunder rang throughout the sky, and Diego smiled slyly. He turned around to face his friends, who were understandably looking a little ticked off at him for insisting they come here instead of sleep.

"I need to show you guys something cool," he urged. His herd stared at him curiously, demanding an explanation. The sabre cleared his throat. "When I was a cub, my dad told me this story. It was about this small herd of mastodons that were standing where we are now. Apparently a fight broke out, and they were all trumpeting at each other." Everyone was now listening intently. "Because they were making so much noise," he continued, "all the snow on the top of the mountain came tumbling down as an avalanche. All of them were killed. Everyone within a ten mile radius could hear them screaming."

Ellie looked dispirited. "Aw, that's so sad!" she whimpered.

Diego sat down. "Yeah. So after that, I heard about this cave lion that was out hunting here. He was chasing a gazelle, and when he was about to kill it, the gazelle screamed so loudly that it caused another avalanche. But this time, the lion and gazelle _didn't _get killed; the snow split away into two separate parts right before it reached them. Not a single piece of snow touched either one of them. And once the avalanche was over, the lion discovered mastodon footprints bordering the edge of where the snow split apart. They hadn't been there before."

"So what are you trying to say?" Manny asked impatiently as another small bang of thunder sounded overhead.

Diego's eyes lit up. "The ghosts of the mastodons- -they're patrolling this mountain to make sure no one else meets the same demise that they did."

Crash and Eddie huddled together in fright. "Ghosts?" they bleated nervously. Peaches sighed, rolling her eyes in boredom. "Ghosts don't exist, guys," she stated as-a-matter-of-factly.

Diego let out a small chuckle. "That's what I said. But after I left my parents, I happened to cross this mountain, and I decided to try it out. I stood right here," he patted the ground right next to him with his paw, "and I roared as loud as I could. It was enough to cause an avalanche, and as it was racing towards me, I was beginning to have second thoughts. But right as I thought I was done for, the avalanche split in two and avoided me. I investigated the snow afterward, and sure enough, I found a bunch of mastodon footprints all around me."

Manny huffed. "Diego, you of all people should know that ghosts don't exist. A rock probably split the avalanche in two, not a bunch of ghosts!" He turned to the rest of the herd. "Let's go home, guys."

Everyone started to leave. "Wait!" Diego shouted, catching everyone's attention. "Let's just stay here for a few minutes. I guarantee you guys that the same thing will happen. If you're forgetting, I saw it myself."

"Which isn't saying much, 'cause obviously you've gone insane," Manny cut in. Sid yawned, and rubbed his eyes sleepily. Manny glared sternly at the sabre. "Come on, let's go back home and go to bed. It's about to storm."

"But that's what we're waiting on!" Diego replied, standing up. Manny growled at him. "What do you me-"

Just then, loud thunder boomed louder than a firing cannon, and lightning flashed suddenly like a sneak attack. Crash, Eddie, and Sid all screamed in fright. A low rumble then sounded, and they immediately silenced. Diego smiled excitedly; the thunder was enough to cause an avalanche. The ground started to shake as the raging snow sped down the mountain slope. "Run!" Ellie shouted, panicked.

Diego quickly darted in front of his herd before they could make a break for it. "Uncle Diego!" Peaches screamed, halting. "What are you doing?"

"Yeah, dude! Move it! We're gonna get plowed over!" Crash exclaimed.

"Just stay here! It's not gonna work if you all are running all over the place!" Diego announced loudly over the roar of the avalanche. To his friends' fear, it was almost upon them. Manny threw his trunk up in frustration. "Diego, MOVE!"

But Diego stood his ground.

The sound of the rushing snow was getting close, and everyone turned their heads around to get a look at their situation. They had no time to react. Peaches hugged her mother tightly, worried that they were going to be killed. But right before the ocean of snow could engulf the herd, it began to...split apart. Everyone watched the phenomenon in amazement, with the exception of Diego. He watched in satisfaction. The group of animals seemed to be concealed in a force field that the snow was afraid to touch; as Diego predicted, not a single piece of snow landed on anyone.

The avalanche only lasted a couple of minutes altogether. It eventually died down, and Diego stared at his friends in victory. "I told you it was real! See? The avalanche completely avoided us," Diego blazoned happily. Although everyone was relieved to be alive, they couldn't be any more furious than they already were right then and there.

Manny clenched his teeth, and he stared at Diego with eyes that seemed as if they were on fire with anger. With an accusing trunk pointed in the cat's direction, Manny shouted violently, "You almost killed us! You put everyone's lives on the line just 'cause you believe in ghosts! Well, let me tell you something, Diego...GHOSTS DON'T EXIST! There were never any mastodons! There was a rock splitting up the snow, I just know it! You wouldn't let us sleep, you made us walk all the way out here in the middle of the night, and you almost killed us! What's wrong with you?"

Diego only smirked. "Absolutely nothing," he said calmly. "Come with me." The cat began to walk back toward the mountain. Nobody moved at first, but eventually Sid gulped, and followed anxiously. Everyone else slowly began to advance as well. Finally they arrived to the place where the snow split. "Look here," Diego said with a smooth voice. Everyone looked, and one by one, their jaws all dropped.

"No way..." Manny whispered. There, in the snow, surrounding the site where the herd had been standing during the avalanche, were several mastodon footprints.

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This is my all-time favorite ghost story plot. Did you like it? Please review!


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